


A Small Fire

by mystery_deer



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, a tiny bit of angst but actually not really at all
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-20
Updated: 2019-03-20
Packaged: 2019-11-26 00:17:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18173342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mystery_deer/pseuds/mystery_deer
Summary: "There was a small fire in my home. I lost many photo albums of treasured memories. I'm devastated."





	A Small Fire

The fire had been centralized to the study, thank God. 

When he’d first gotten the call he’d worried about having to move, about Kevin, about Cheddar.  
All three of these fears vanished when he, after struggling for ten minutes to find a parking space, made it to the front of his home. Kevin was standing there staring at the building with Cheddar held in his arms, the dog licking him without being dissuaded. 

The firemen left their walls wet and their floorboards marred with boot marks.  
He followed Kevin upstairs, to the study that the realtor who’d showed them this home had nervously said could be a baby’s room and then apologized. After moving in they’d joked about their books being their babies. It was a strange thing to recall, seeing it all in a state of violent disrepair. He’d been here earlier, just last night. He felt shocked, despite having seen fires much worse.

Kevin was surveying the damage coldly, frowning. The walls were blackened and peeling, it smelled awful and his socks were wet from the water. Something that used to be a book fell from what must have been a shelf. Kevin gasped lightly then coughed.  
“This is why I hate firemen.” Raymond said, testing a joke. Kevin only tilted his head back to see how far up the destruction crept. “I will get the garbage bags.” He said in way of apology, making his way downstairs to retrieve them. 

In the kitchen Cheddar perked up and tried to lick Raymond’s hand as he pet him. “Feeling cheeky are you?” he murmured, unable to help the smile on his face. “Alright, down boy.” He grabbed four trash bags and nodded at the dog, who was sitting obediently, mouth open in what Kevin often said was a smile. He’d said that when they’d gotten him.

_____

“He reminds me of you, that smile.”

_____

Back upstairs he watched Kevin in the doorway for a moment. He was crouched down holding what looked to be a block of soggy char.  
“I have the bags.”  
“It’s all ruined.” Raymond walked into the room, placing the bags by his feet. Kevin looked up at him. “So many memories.” placing the block of char onto the ever-growing linear tower of blackened objects next to him, Kevin let out a measured sigh. 

“Memories are not contained within the confines of a photograph.” Comforted Raymond, wrapping an arm around his beloved.  
“Was that a haiku?”  
“It wasn’t meant to be.”  
“Memories are not contained within the confines of a photograph.” Repeated Kevin under his breath, feeling enamored despite the tragedy.  
“We will make new memories. We will clean and organize and...regroup. It will be alright.”  
“That doesn’t make it any less sad.”

He agreed. They were sitting now, on the damp floor. It was wholly uncomfortable. They went through the albums, to see if there was anything they could salvage.  
“Oh of course…” Raymond heard. He looked up to see Kevin holding a picture and moved closer so he could see it better.  
“Goodness.”

It was them on the night of that infernal party. Raymond remembered it well. All officers who had significant others were urged to bring them, to boost the image of them as family-men. He remembered being on the fence about bringing Kevin until one of his colleagues expressly told him not to, he decided then and there.  
“Of course this survived, oh cruel hands of fate.” Kevin ignored his husband’s melodrama and instead took the picture to better examine it. “It’s not even singed!”

“We look miserable.” Kevin smiled ruefully. “I haven’t looked at this in ages, I thought you’d thrown it out after making your point.”

___________

“Can we leave now Raymond? We are clearly unwanted here and neither of us are enjoying ourselves.”

“After the picture.” They were sitting in the corner alone, pariahs. Kevin had been reading a book and steadfastly ignoring the glares and laughter. Raymond had taken to bouncing his leg, staring straight ahead without comment. Kevin’s ankle rested gently against the leg Raymond wasn’t moving and even that level of intimacy felt forbidden here. 

Raymond thought back to that meeting, his captain stressing the importance of looking good.  
“We don’t want people thinking of us as anythin’ less than upstanding pillars of the community. It could be in the papers.” He’d looked scornfully at Raymond who looked back blankly. “As long as nothing goes wrong.”

Raymond stopped bouncing his leg as the camera-man started setting up an hour behind schedule, resigned to the fact that they were not going to leave. He felt like grinning, his heart was pounding. “Right after the picture we will go.”

The picture had been in the newspaper with both of them cropped out, there was enough space between them and the rest of the guests that it wasn’t a difficult feat. He’d kept this copy pridefully despite Kevin’s dislike for it. 

“Why on earth do you want to keep that in here?” Kevin asked, watching Raymond slide the picture into one of their photo albums. 

“It’s a snapshot of our victory.”  
“It’s a picture of us being uncomfortable and excluded.” Raymond replaced the book and turned to his boyfriend who raised an eyebrow at him. “I don’t understand your joy.”

“I am not joyful, this wasn’t a good night for us but nor was it a good night for them. We were there until the very end. We were in their precious picture and they will know that. They will know that we are not afraid of them. That we will not be bullied into nonexistence.”

“Ah. Well then.” Kevin said, drastically less enthusiastic than his boyfriend. “I am afraid I still feel that tonight was a horrendous affair. I may be soured on the idea of parties forever.” 

“Well, perhaps I can make your night...better?” Raymond asked, sidling up to him. Kevin raised both of his eyebrows and wrapped both arms around the man.

“That sounds groovy.”

___________

“I said ‘groovy’?” Kevin asked incredulously, holding out the picture to his husband. “How awful.”  
“It was a different time.” Raymond said comfortingly, taking the photograph back from Kevin. “Yes, despite all the unpleasantness surrounding this picture...I cannot help but have a soft spot for it.” Kevin gazed at his husband a beat before standing and brushing off his pants out of habit despite the objective uselessness of the motion given that the pants were absolutely soaked. He winced at this and left. 

Raymond set the photo aside and continued cleaning until he heard a bit of a ruckus in the hallway. Peeking his head out to see if he was needed he saw Kevin holding an empty frame and tutting at Cheddar, who was the picture of innocence.  
“You utter rascal! Please do not sneak your way underneath my feet as I am attempting to walk Cheddar.” Cheddar’s tail wagged. “Do you understand?” Cheddar jumped a bit and began panting heavily. “Thank you, keep this in mind for future reference.” He pet Cheddar’s head and they both smiled at the dog’s happy half-barks. 

“No barking Cheddar.” They both reminded him. 

That out of the way Kevin made his way over to Raymond, holding out the frame. “Here, please.”  
“You would allow that picture to be framed?” Kevin nodded as the frame was taken from his hands.  
“It means a lot to you, meaning it means a lot to me.” Kevin stood ram-rod straight even when lounging in the doorway, something that Raymond adored. He looked ridiculous and handsome in his slightly mussed attire. His hair was also looking less-than-put-together, a strand falling down onto his face. “Perhaps you were right and it was some form of...fate.” 

“If this is some lead-in into one of your prophetic tales I am not interested.”  
“It is not but your disdain for my work is noted.”  
“As is your disdain for mine.” They smile easily, their joking familiar. Kevin kisses him. “Where would you like for me to put it?” Raymond asks, fetching the picture and sliding it into its new frame.  
“In the living room perhaps.” Kevin said offhandedly, going back to the task of salvaging. “And while you are out there please take Cheddar downstairs, he is being a nuisance.” He states, stressing the last word as if the dog can read tone. “Oh he knows.” Replies Kevin without Raymond saying a word. 

Raymond stands in the doorway, one foot out of the charred study, looking back at his husband. The love of his life. A thousand embarrassing analogies and metaphors and poetic language entered and left his mind within a moment and was interrupted by a familiar bark. He looked down to see Cheddar circling him in that adorable focused waddle of his. “Cheddar,” He and his husband warned with a warm undercurrent of glee. “No barking.”


End file.
